Gold separator



Feb. 27, 1934.

Filed Dec. 51. 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 gm uawbom RJ I BERRY RALPH L-MOO/V Feb. 27, 1934. R. F. BERRY ET AL GOLD SEPARATOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec.

gwuwwtors R. F. BERRY fi'AL l/ L. M00

Patented Feb. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES GOLD SEPARATOR Robert F. Berry and Ralph L. Moon, Hanford, Calif.

Application December 31, 1931 Serial No. 584,262

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a separator and more particularly a separator especially adapted for separating free milling gold from the concentrated material.

One of the objects of the present invention is to providea gold separator which will efficiently separate the free milling gold from the concentrated material.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a separator in which the free milling gold is separated and held in one compartment or container and the residue diverted into another.

Another attribute of the invention will be found to reside in the arrangement and construction of the various parts thereof providing a complete cycle of operation in which the free milling gold is separated and held in one compartment and the residue in another.

Other objects including low cost of manufacture, simplicity, durability and efficiency of operation will become apparent during the course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application in which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the same,

Figure 1 is a side elevational view partly in section of the separator,

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view oi Figure 1, taken on line 22, and,

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of Figure 1, taken on line 3--3.

In the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention, the numeral 4 designates a settling tank on which there is mounted a trough 6. The trough is secured at one end to the settling tank by means of a bracket 6 and is supported at its other end by a frame 10.

The trough is of rectangular formation and consists of an open end 14, a bottom 16 and a side wall 18. As is illustrated in the drawings, one end of the trough is of circular formation and the bottom and side walls depend downwardly defining a V-shaped sub-trough 20 and a depending flange 22 to which there is secured a ring flange 24. A removable compartment or container 26 adapted to contain mercury is secured to the depending flange portion by means of a similar ring flange 28 which is fixed to the ring flange 24 by means of bolts 30. In the bottom of the removable compartment 26 there is provided a plug 32 for permitting the contents of the compartment to be removed therefrom.

The compartment 26 is filled with a solution which readily mixes with gold, such as mercury to a level slightly below the lowest point of the V-shaped trough 20.

Extending vertically into the compartment 26 is a tubing or casing 34 which has mounted for rotation therein a screw conveyor 36. The tubing 34 is provided with end plates 38 and 40 which have bearings arranged therein in which the screw conveyor freely rotates. The shaft of the screw conveyor on its upper end is provided with a pulley 42 around which may be trained a belt for transmitting power to the conveyor. The other end of the conveyor shaft extends downwardly beyond the plate 40 and has secured thereon a propeller agitator 44. Material is introduced into the casing 34 through a hopper 46 and a chute 48. High pressure nozzles 50, 52 and 54 project downwardly through the side wall of the trough at a point above the normal level of the mercury and in substantially the same plane as the bottom of the trough and are arranged, as clearly indicated in Figure 2 at an angle with respect to the side wall of the trough so as to cause a centrifugal motion of the fiuid leaving the nozzle.

The high pressure nozzles 50, 52 and 54 are in communication with the settling tank through conduits 56, 58, high pressure pump 60, and conduits 62 and 64. The pump is rotated through a pulley 64 around which there is trained a belt 66 or by any other suitable means. It is to be understood that any form of a suitable high pressure pump may be employed and that the invention is not limited in this respect.

In operation the concentrated material containing free milling gold is introduced into the hopper 46 passing through chute 48 into the tubing 34 where it is conveyed to the compartment 26 by means of the screw propeller into the mercury solution at a point below the normal level of the solution. The concentrated solution containing the free milling gold will be agitated by the propeller agitator 44 and amalgamation of the gold will be effected, causing separation of" the free milling gold from the concentrated material and the gold will settle to the bottom of the compartment and the residue or clean dirt will rise to the top of the mercury where it is subjected to a spray of high pressure stream of water from the nozzles 50, 52, and 54 which give it a centrifugal motion, thereby releasing any particles of mercury that might adhere thereto.

The clean dirt is then carried along the trough by the flow of water, flowing in the direction in dicated by the arrows, where it passes through the open end of the trough 6 into the settling tank 4 where the mud and dirt will settle and the water will be re-circulated through the circulating pump 60 back to the high pressure noz-' zles 50, 52 and 54. In case, due to the pressure of the stream of water on the mercury, the mercury level rises, the mercury will be prevented from flowing into the main trough by the spaced V-shaped bafiles arranged on the upper surface of the sub-trough 20. However, in case that some of the mercury passes beyond the subtrough 20 it will be stopped by the V-shaped baffle plate 72 and drained into the conduit 12, which has a plug in the bottom. This mercury can be withdrawn when necessary by removing the plug in the bottom of the conduit 12.

To obtain the amalgamated gold it is only necessary to remove the compartment 26 from the tank. It will thus be seen that the particular construction of the gold separator permits of a complete cycle of operation which deposits the amalgamated gold in one compartment, and the residue or the clean dirt in another tank or compartment.

While there is shown only one embodiment of the invention in the accompanying drawings, it is capable of various changes and modifications, without departing from the spirit thereof, and it is intended therefore that only such limitations be imposed thereon as are indicated in the prior art or in: the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed is:--

A separator of the class described, comprising a settling tank, a trough having a conduit in one end thereof to act as a drain therefrom, a V- shaped baiile plate in the bottom of said trough disposed around the opening of the conduit, the bottom of said trough at the other end sloping downwardly from substantially the mid-point of the length of the trough defining a sub-trough, spaced baffle plates in said sub-trough, a removable container disposed on the bottom of said trough and having its periphery adjacent the terminal edge of the sub-trough, mercury in said container, a casing having a screw conveyor therein extending into the mercury below the level thereof, means for introducing concentrated material containing free milling gold in said casing whereby the concentrated material is conveyed by the screw conveyor into the mercury and contacts the same below the level of the mercury and amalgamation of the gold will be effected and the residue will rise to the surface of the mercury, a plurality of spaced high pressure nozzles in the sides of said tank around the peripher of the container, a conduit to drain any mercury that might be stopped by the V-shaped baffle, a high pressure pump interposed in said conduit, said high pressure nozzles being disposed at an angle with respect to the sides of the tank and the surface of the mercury to cause a centrifugal motion of the residue on the surface of the mercury by the controlling fluid from the nozzles to release particles of mercury that might have adhered to the residue and force the residue over the bafiles in said sub-trough and into the main trough into the settling tank where the residue will settle and the fluid will be re-circulated from the settling tank back to the nozzles.

R. F. BERRY. RALPH L. MOON. 

